I Hope He Likes It
by Cold-Wings
Summary: [RyoSaku] Valentine's Day is quickly approaching as Sakuno ponders what to give Ryoma. Wanting to give him something memorable, she gets an idea from an unlikely person.


Written for the Ryosaku fanworks LJ comm Pontapairworks. The first of two Enjoy.

It was February 13th. Sakuno sat in her kitchen, pouring over various cookbooks, trying to decide what to make Ryoma for Valentine's Day. Sure she could make homemade chocolates for him, but considering the number of admirers he had, she was certain every other girl would do the same. She had to make something unique, special; something that would stand out above the rest. _Who am I kidding?_ Sakuno thought, resting her small fists on her temples. _Ryoma-kun probably won't even eat them. I want to give him something he'll remember._ Her thoughts were interrupted by the front door opening.

"Oh, Sakuno, I'm home."

"Grandma, welcome back. You look tired."

Sumire sat opposite her granddaughter. "It's been a long day. Did you pick up my order from the sporting goods store like I asked you to?"

Sakuno's eye's widened. "Oh no!" She exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand. "I forgot. I'm sorry Grandma. I'll go pick it up right now."

Sumire laughed. "Slow down Sakuno. They're open for another three hours. Take your time."

"I know, but I want to get home and bake so…" She trailed off, glancing at the floor.

"I see I see." Her grandmother smiled. "Well then, you better hurry."

"Alright." Sakuno agreed, standing up and walking toward the door. Putting on her shoes, she exited her house.

* * *

Sakuno walked to the store, lost in her own thoughts. She was still unsure of what to bake when she got home,  
but she stopped in her tracks when she remembered something she needed. _I need grip tape. Senpai told me my grip was getting worn and I should change my grip tape._ She thought, opening the door of the shop. Scanning the shelves, she spotted a single roll and made a beeline for it. As she reached for it, a larger hand covered her own. Looking up, she met the blank gaze of Ibu Shinji. "I-Ibu-san. Hello."

"Huh?" Ibu questioned. "Oh, you're that girl from Seigaku. You go to the tennis games right? How is Echizen doing? I hope his eye is alright and didn't suffer any permanent damage, although it wasn't technically my fault since he's the one who swung his racket so carelessly. His hand was probably sweaty too. You get sweaty when you play tennis. That's why you should always have a towel with you and make sure your grip tape isn't worn down. I like this kind of grip tape. Echizen likes this grip tape too. We were in this same position once before. We wound up splitting the grip tape, but if you think about it, that's not very practical since we go to different schools."

Sakuno just smiled as the boy rambled on, not having the heart to stop him_. Ibu-san sure likes to talk doesn't he_? She thought. A question directed at her brought her out of her reverie.

"Are you Echizen's girlfriend?" Sakuno's face flushed as pink as the stripes on Fudomine's jersey as she shook her head. "Oh. Well, tomorrow is Valentine's Day and I was going to say that if he was your boyfriend you should be home making chocolates for him or something. I wish a girl would give me chocolates on Valentine's Day, but Tachibana-san and Kamio are more popular than I am so they'll probably be getting chocolates and I won't."

Sakuno glanced around the store, looking for a way out of her predicament. Her eyes widened when she spotted an item in a nearby aisle. "Um, Ibu-san?" She said, cutting the boy off quietly. "You can have the grip tape. You gave me an idea." She smiled, taking her hand out from under his. "Thank you Ibu-san." She bowed, darting off to grab the item. Ibu nodded, slightly confused.

* * *

Dashing home with her grandmother's order in one hand and her purchase in the other, she planned what she was going to do with it. It would take some time, and she would probably be up late, but it was worth it. Taking off her shoes as she stepped inside, she handed her grandmother's package to her. "Oh, thank you Sakuno." She said. "I set out the baking pans and measuring cups for you." 

"Thank you Grandma, but I won't be needing them anymore. I have something to do now, so I'll be in my room the rest of the night." She blushed, darting upstairs.

Sumire laughed as she watched her granddaughter's door close_. Whatever it is, I'm sure he'll like it._

"It's finished." Sakuno said quietly, holding the neatly wrapped package in front of her. Glancing at her alarm clock, her jaw dropped a bit when she saw the time; 1:45_. Not much time to sleep_. She thought, turning off her light_. Tomorrow is a big day. I hope everything goes alright_.

* * *

Bleary eyed and half asleep, Sakuno trudged into school where she was greeted by an overly excited Tomoka. "Sakuno!" Her friend sang. "Did you bring a present for Ryoma-sama? Of course you did!" She exclaimed, answering her own question. "Come help me put my present in his shoe locker." 

Helping was a relative term. Sakuno merely stood there while her friend tossed the presents that were already in his shoe locker into the trash to make sure hers was the only one in there. "There." Tomoka said, extremely pleased with herself. "Now Ryoma-Sama will have to find my present. Sakuno, aren't you going to put yours in there too?"

Sakuno shook her head. "I-I'd rather give it to him in person."

Tomoka grinned like a cat. "Oh? And just what did you get him? Tell me tell me tell me!"

"I have some homework that I need to finish before class since I couldn't do it last night. I'll see you later Tomo-chan." Sakuno darted off, leaving her friend behind. It wasn't that she didn't want to tell her friend, but she wanted Ryoma to be the first to know what it was. Unfortunately for her, therein was her problem. Every time she saw him, he was with someone; be it Horio, Kachiro, a teacher, or even Momo-senpai. _After school then. _She thought. _That's my last chance._

Ryoma unceremoniously tossed his gear into his tennis bag and slung it over his shoulder. He was never much of a fan of Valentine's Day, but today proved to be an exception. He had opened his shoe locker that morning to find an overly large box of chocolate from Ryuzaki's incredibly loud friend, Tomato, or whatever her name was, but nothing from Ryuzaki herself. It shouldn't have, but it irked him the rest of the day. He had come to expect certain things from her: her delicious boxed lunches, the clumsy way she played tennis, her presence at his games, hearing her call his name during his matches, and things like that. Yes, it was selfish of him, but it was only natural for him to expect a gift from her. It was Valentine's Day after all. Opening the club house door, he said, "I'll see everyone later. I'm going home."

Walking toward the school gate, he paid little attention to the brown-haired girl leaning against the wall until she spoke his name. "Ryoma-kun?"

_What does she want?_ Ryoma thought. "Ryuzaki." He stated simply, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"I, um, wanted to, you see…happy Valentine's Day." She stammered, holding out his present.

Ryoma blinked, taking it from her small hands. As he opened it, Sakuno explained, "I-I wanted to give it to you earlier, but you were always with someone so I couldn't. I hope you like it."

Opening the box, Ryoma smirked when he saw what was inside. There, in bright Seigaku blue, lay a fluffy towel with his name hand embroidered in white next to a tiny tennis ball. _So, she didn't forget._ He thought, slipping his bag off his shoulder. "Thank you, Ryuzaki." He said, smiling as he placed the towel in his bag.

Sakuno heaved a silent sigh of relief at his words. "You're welcome, Ryoma-kun."

The boy stood up and placed his bag back on his shoulder. Resuming his walk to the gate, he looked over his shoulder at the pigtailed girl questioningly. "You coming?"

"Eh? Where?" She asked.

Ryoma smirked. "Come on. I'll walk you home."

Sakuno nodded, trotting to catch up with him. "Thank you, Ryoma-kun."

A familiar voice called out to them as they left the school grounds. "Oi Echizen!" Momo yelled, twirling an object above his head. "You left your towel in the club room!"

"Keep it!" Echizen called back without breaking stride.

_Maybe today didn't turn out so bad after all._ He thought, glancing down at the girl walking beside him.


End file.
